The Bruins obviously would’ve preferred to win against the Sabres on Thursday night, but they are far from disappointed in the effort they put forth.

They fell to Buffalo 2-1 at HSBC Arena, but given Tuukka Rask‘s performance and Boston’s constant offensive pressure, there were many positives to take from the matchup.

After the Sabres went up 1-0 on Thomas Vanek‘s ninth career playoff goal, Mark Recchi knotted the score at 1 with a power-play goal in the second period. But it was Craig Rivet‘s second-period tally that served as the game winner.

The B’s outshot Buffalo 39-32 and 24-8 in the second period alone.

Rask finished with 30 saves on 32 shots in his first-ever playoff start, while Ryan Miller upstaged him with 38 saves on 39 shots.